The New York Jets have received some rough news when it comes to retaining this injured star.
The New York Jets suffered a massive blow before the 2025 NFL campaign even started, losing star guard Alijah Vera-Tucker to a torn triceps.
It certainly wasn't Vera-Tucker's first bout with health issues, as the former first-round pick has played in just 43 games since entering the league in 2021.
When he is healthy, though, Vera-Tucker is a terrific player, and now, he is headed toward free agency.
Given how rough the Jets' offensive line play was without Vera-Tucker this past season, New York would surely like to retain him, but Pro Football Focus has provided some bad news for Gang Green in that regard.
In a list of its 250 free agents of the offseason, PFF ranked Vera-Tucker 37th and projected him to bag a four-year, $70 million contract ($45 million guaranteed) on the open market.
Alijah Vera-Tucker. Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images."A torn triceps closed the curtains on Vera-Tucker's 2025 campaign before it began — the third season-ending injury of his young career," PFF wrote. "He has still established himself as a promising guard, earning three straight season-long 70.0-plus PFF overall grades and allowing the fourth-lowest pressure rate (2.8%) among guards in 2024."
Now, it should be noted that the Jets are loaded with cap room heading into the offseason. Currently, New York is slated to have $83.3 million in available money, so if the Jets wanted to re-sign Vera-Tucker, they could.
The problem is that New York has so many other holes on its roster that handing an injury-prone guard $17.5 million annually is probably not the shrewdest move.
On the bright side, the Jets are loaded with draft capital, so they can find a replacement for Vera-Tucker in the NFL Draft this April. Remember: New York landed its two starting tackles in the draft the last couple of years.
That being said, it would still really stink to lose Vera-Tucker, who is still just 26 years old and managed a 77.7 overall grade at Pro Football Focus in 2024. That placed him 11th among 77 qualifying guards.
But the Jets simply cannot afford to pay Vera-Tucker that much money when they don't even know if he is going to be able to stay on the field. New York does not have that type of luxury.
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